KEY STORIES TODAY Leadership set for governing Social Democrats in Romania, still sought for EU bodies

Romania’s leading Social Democrats have a new leadership. The country has ended its presidency of the EU Council. President Iohannis made himself heard in EU affairs as Europeans struggle to establish new leadership of EU bodies. In Bucharest, artists stage protests. The key stories for the weekend:

• Romania’s governing Social Democrats (PSD) have a new leadership, after former boss Liviu Dragnea was sent to jail under corruption charges. In the wake of an extraordinary congress this weekend, PM Viorica Dancila is now leader of the party as it braces for 3 rounds of elections in next 18 months. More on this here (in English)

• On Sunday, Viorica Dancila responded to Liviu Plesoianu’s criticism of her, dismissing his allegations that she was led by intelligence services. More notably, she stepped away, while timidly, from Plesoianu’s anti-American and anti-European discourse. At the recent Social Democratic Party (PSD) congress, Plesoianu came second after Viorica Dancila, with a quarter of her total votes: while she was voted by 2,828 delegates, only 715 voted for the member most prominently supported by the Russian propaganda and most outspoken against Western values. More on the Dancila-Plesoianu faceoff after the Congress – in Romanian here

• Romanian President Klaus Iohannis made himself heard upon arrival at the extraordinary session of the European Council on Sunday night, saying he found it unacceptable that new members of the EU not have a representative in a major European position. „I am decided to get fully involved to obtain this sort of balance,” he said as negotiations for the new leadership of EU bodies was facing difficulties on Sunday. More on this in Romanian here

• This position was conveyed shortly after President Iohannis dismissed talk of him taking over as president of the European Council, saying that he was President and Romania and wants to keep that job – more of this here (in English)

• Romania’s Presidency of the EU Council has come to an end. What this presidency meant for Romanians – here (report in English)

• Romanian artists protested before government headquarters in Bucharest on Sunday against budget cuts and layoffs at cultural institutions, which they blame on disastrous policies promoted by the government. The protest comes several days after the head of the biggest theater in Romania, the Bucharest National Theater, said that it was on the brink of artistic survival. Culture minister Daniel Breaz, instead, announced he would order checks at the theater as the institution has a bigger budget this year than the previous year. More on this in Romanian here

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